City Logistics Projects Research Articles

The knowledge-based city logistics as a new approach for the urban freight transport problems and solutions

Improving city logistics processes based on knowledge resources built on reliable data is a challenge for many cities. The aim of the paper is to introduce and define the concept of knowledge-based city logistics. To achieve this aim, a questionnaire survey has been conducted on a sample of 31 experts who have extensive experience in city logistics projects and activities. In the course of the studies, the knowledge-based city logistics domain is identified and, as a result, a definition of knowledge-based city logistics is introduced. The implementation of knowledge-based city logistics processes does not always run smoothly. The difficulties are observed mostly in the area of data gathering and knowledge acquisition.

Analysis of contemporary scientific achievements in the field of Urban Freight Transport in terms of the use of knowledge-based management

One of the most important city logistics problem is the lack of knowledge resources related to the freight flows and routes at the city area. In recent years some works related to these issues have been realized. Nevertheless, it seems that problem is still not solved on the appropriate level. Due to that the assessment of the past and present city logistics projects and activities related to that is an important objective of research work. The paper is focused on the results of state-of-the-art analysis made as a first stage of project GRASS-NEXT, realized under Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2019. The analysis was realized in the context of knowledge management specificity, with the special attention on data analysis, including data mining processes related to the freight traffic in the cities as well as the routing problems of city logistics fleets.

Scaling Up Smart City Logistics Projects: The Case of the Smooth Project

A large number of smart city logistics projects fail to scale up, remaining a local experimental exercise. This lack of scalability is, in fact, commonly recognized as a major problem. This study aims to determine the key success factors related to the scalability of smart city logistics projects. The process of scaling up, which is articulated as expansion, roll-out, and replication, is defined as the ability of a system to improve its scale by aiming to meet the increasing volume demand. Specifically, this study investigates the scalability intended to be used as expansion and roll-out. A qualitative case study was conducted to fulfill the research purpose. The chosen case study is SMOOTh, a pilot project currently underway in the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, involving a diverse group of companies including Volvo Group and DHL. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven of the project’s stakeholders. Through a thematic analysis, four categories and the respective success factors were identified. These were represented by a business model, as well as technical, stakeholder and regulatory factors. The paper concludes with observations and recommendations aimed at the pilot initiatives, adding new perspectives to the upscaling debate.

City Logistics Analysis of Urban Areas: An Analytic Hierarchy Process Based Study

Nowadays, the urban freight traffic is a very important research area because of its significant effect on the urban sustainability, and the last period with the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted its importance again, with the increasing of share of the number of home deliveries in the crowded cities. In this field, we should focus on the problems of the logistics systems of the so-called urban concentrated sets of delivery locations (e.g. shopping malls or markets), as in their case, it is needed to serve lots of stores in a very small area. Based on the results of former research projects, it can be said, that it could be really important to develop such a ranking model, which could rank the current city logistics state and the future city logistics development potentials of these concentrated sets of delivery locations and other urban zones with single delivery locations at the same time. In this paper, we are going to present an Analytic Hierarchy Process based multicriterial ranking model, which makes it possible to rank urban areas in a two-dimensional system, where the first dimension is the current city logistics state, and the second one is the future development potential. The main purpose of this ranking is to mark urban zones in future city logistics projects those, which could be well developed, and it is worthwhile to develop them. We are going to write about our former related research results and about the formalization of the AHP-based model. As we work and live in Budapest, our model was tested on this city, for first, on 4 shopping malls. We are going to present the results of the tests, the first results of the sensitivity analysis, and the next steps of the research. This paper is a revised and expanded version of a paper entitled “AHP-based multicriterial ranking model for the city logistics analysis of urban areas” presented online at the 10th International Conference on Logistics, Informatics and Service Sciences (LISS2020), on July 27, 2020. © 2021, Success Culture Press. All rights reserved.

Logistics Projects in the Czech Republic

Abstract Logistics is becoming a fast-growing industry with an endless amount of logistics projects. We find such a definition just with Polish authors. Domestic and other authors do not use the concept of logistics projects, but we find in the specific literature terms such as city logistics project, urban logistics project, or reverse logistics project. These concepts are about projects which focus on logistics in the cities than in the total concept of logistics projects. The paper will deal with the idea of logistics projects regarding business firms in the Czech Republic. The main objective of the paper is defining logistics projects.

Selected European city logistics projects as examples of benchmarking utilization

Abstract In the turbulently changing environment, in which the significance of cities in the economic life is increasing day by day, city authorities must compete for inhabitants and users, and the vital thing they can offer is the life quality in their city. One of the possibilities that facilitate obtaining knowledge in the area of urban freight transport is participating in projects that involve both the cities with experience in that regard and cities that search for solutions to problems related to freight transport. The development of scientific research and support for projects by European Union structures indicate the undertaking of interdisciplinary research projects, including initiatives to exchange good practices in this field. This paper presents the empirical analysis on the methodologies applied in projects implemented in Szczecin and Stargard. The presented issues are based on the Author’s own experiences resulting from active participation in implementation of all the four projects. The major aim of the paper is to highlight the most important similarities in project, which may be an important hint when making implementation decisions.

The role of a structured stakeholder consultation process within the establishment of a sustainable urban supply chain

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to describe and analyse a case of local freight stakeholder involvement to plan and design eco-efficient city logistics innovations in Como, a small city in Italy. While the importance of a well-functioning urban goods distribution system is widely acknowledged, city authorities have become increasingly aware of the need to minimise the negative impacts associated to the system. There are now countless examples of attempts to increase the eco-efficiency of urban freight deliveries; however, very few have made a notable impact. The success of such schemes often depends upon the response of a range of private sector freight stakeholders and their involvement during the planning process of these solutions is crucial.Design/methodology/approach– To engage local freight stakeholders within the planning process of a city logistics project, the logical framework approach, in the form of the design and monitoring framework (DMF) developed by the Asian Development Bank, has been applied.Findings– The structured consultation process implied within the DMF approach allowed urban freight stakeholders to share their aspirations from the beginning of the city freight planning process, despite their differences in priorities in adopting eco-efficient logistics innovations. The process ensured that city stakeholders accepted and committed to the city logistics strategies formulated during the consultation process, namely: changes to the Limited Traffic Zone regulation, the use of an urban consolidation centre and hybrid electric truck adoption.Research limitations/implications– The evaluation of the DMF application will be definitive after the demonstration/implementation stage of the city logistics project. It will then become clear if freight stakeholders have committed to the project and if it is effective in delivering the expected outputs and outcomes.Practical implications– Local city authorities may find this method useful in situations where a structured consultation process is needed for addressing urban freight issues. This is especially the case in the context of introducing innovative, eco-efficiency solutions.Originality/value– The application of DMF in the developed environment can be considered novel; this paper extends this with an application to the promotion of sustainable urban freight.

The emergence of city logistics: the case of Copenhagen’s Citylogistik-kbh

Purpose – Many city logistics projects in Europe have failed. A better understanding of the complex organizational change processes in city logistics projects with many stakeholders may expand city logistics capabilities and thereby help prevent future failures. The purpose of this paper is therefore to increase understanding of how city logistics emerge, and secondarily, to investigate whether such processes can be managed at all. Design/methodology/approach – A paradigm shift in urban planning creates new ways of involving stakeholders in new sustainability measures such as city logistics. Organizational change theory is applied to capture the social processes leading to emergence of city logistics. The methodology is a qualitative processual analysis of a single longitudinal case. Findings – The change process took different forms over time. At the time of concluding the analysis, positive dialectic forces were at play. City logistics schemes are still in an innovation phase. The biggest challenge in m...

The Implementation Conditions and Socio-Economic Impact Assessment of Solutions in the Area of City Logistics Projects – Selected Problems

The main objective of the article is to present the concept, conditions of implementation and preferred directions of action of city logistics projects in the context of the processes of social responsibility in the management of the city. The first part of the article presents the concept and types of city logistics projects as one of the symptoms of actions aimed at implementing the objectives and functions of city logistics in the area. The second part presents the conditions and stages of implementation of the effective project solutions in city logistics. This part of the paper also includes the groups of city logistics projects, taking into account factors such as the size of investment and the necessity of legislative and administrative changes to implement them.

The New York City Off-hour Delivery Project: Lessons for City Logistics

The paper identifies and discusses the fundamental tenets that should guide planning and implementation of City Logistics projects, and the chief lessons learned from the off-hours delivery project conducted in New York City.

Towards a taxonomy of City Logistics projects

We present a three-layer taxonomy of City Logistics projects that provides the means to explore the similarities and differences in the elements characterizing the various City Logistics initiatives as a step towards better understanding and predicting their performance. To illustrate its interest, the taxonomy is used to describe well-known systems and identify a number of trends in the evolution of City Logistics.